Bridging the gap between discovery and practical application is a persistent challenge in research, especially when addressing complex health issues like pressure injuries. A new CIHR-funded study brings together persons affected by PI, caregivers, researchers, healthcare providers, and other stakeholders in a collaborative network. The goal is to build consensus around lived experiences, identify key challenges and prioritize strategies that can meaningfully improve prevention, management and overall health outcomes related to pressure injuries.
The team conducted 17 interviews and focus groups with people living with pressure injuries, this also included individuals with a spinal cord injury (SCI). Dr. Sharon Gabison, Principal Investigator of this study says, "there were challenges across the persona, interpersonal, organizational, and policy levels, including limited equipment access and inconsistent staffing, but also strong family support and proactive prevention practices. By surveying people with lived experience of pressure injuries and other health problems, we will be able to determine what the most urgent research and intervention priorities are."
Why It Matters
Pressure injuries can be life-threatening even for people with SCI. One example is Sepsis from pressure wounds, which continues to be a leading cause of death in Canada, despite hospital-acquired pressure injuries being labelled as "never events" in Canada.
“The conflict is clear: we know pressure injuries are deadly, yet as a system we haven’t ‘moved the needle’ in reducing them. This project aims to bridge that gap by highlighting what matters most to the people who live with and manage these injuries every day,” says Spring Hawes, Regional PLEX Engagement Liaison, Praxis. As part of this project, Spring contributed lived experience insights, helped design interview questions, and supported the development of the questionnaire.
More than just data, the project has fostered new networks of collaboration across Canada, patients, caregivers, clinicians, and researchers coming together. It has sparked conversations about why good practices aren’t universally adopted, where system breakdowns occur, and how communities can learn from what works well in certain regions.
As the next steps, the data from the survey will be reviewed by the group early next year defining consensus regarding pressure injury prevention and management. As a result, the team will shape the next phase of research, interventions, and policy advocacy.
click here to participate in the study
Praxis is pleased to support this project by bringing in the perspective of people living with spinal cord injuries, helping with knowledge translation, and committing to sharing findings more broadly.
